Rookie Corner 500

47 comments on “Rookie Corner 500”

1. Happy 500th anniversary to the Rookie Corner 🎉🎂🥂

   What a lovely surprise to see a puzzle from our own Rahmat Ali. Very much looking forward to having a crack at this tomorrow(today) evening 😁

   1. Thank you so much, AgentB. I am really excited to see myself in this Very Very Happy 500th Anniversary to the Rookie Corner of Big Dave’s Crossword Blog, the world’s biggest crossword blog.

2. What a wonderful way to celebrate RC no.500.
   As soon as we saw who the setter was we knew we were in for a scrupulously put together piece of work. We were not disappointed and thoroughly enjoyed and appreciated the solve and are left with just one (21a) where we cannot yet sort out how the wordplay works. We are pretty sure we have the right answer as we needed just one letter to complete the pangram.
   Lots of ticks so we won’t even try to name a favourite.
   Thanks and well done Rahmat Ali.

   1. Firstly, I pay my revered homage to BD who was my friend, philosopher and guide in this beautiful crossword world. Secondly, I apologise to all for commenting so late. Yesterday, I woke up to find my puzzle on the site and the very first comment of AgentB and expressed my happiness in my reply at being a part of this auspicious occasion. Before going to office, I wrote a review for the Saturday DT puzzle. After returning from office, I took a pre-scheduled online counselling session in a diploma course in modern office practice of the Indira Gandhi National Open University that was attended by learners from all over the country. That was followed by my ‘Isha’ prayers and dinner. It was past midnight by then. It’s a holiday for me today.

      Thank you so much, 2Kiwis, for your wonderful comments of the occasion and my puzzle. I remember the moment of January 2021 when BD offered me the coveted hot seat on two Wednesdays to provide hints and tips to the DT Cryptics in your place and I wished you happy and memorable holidays of those two weeks.

      For 21a, there was no play of words as such and I observe that RD did let the cat out of the bag that it was a DD and rightly suggested a look up in the BRB which PostMark, Jose and Senf happened to notice but Hilton did not.

3. Well done Rahmat Ali, a very enjoyable pangram. However, I do have two observations:

   13a – At first, I could not find anything to confirm the obscure, below 500 population hamlet claimed to be a town by a French tourism web site.

   21a – My answer, which I believe is correct, fits the first word of the clue but the un-smelling dog has got me baffled.

   Smiles for 25a (even if it is somewhat wordy), 28a, 7d, and 23d.

   Thanks again and thanks in advance to Prolixic.

   1. Thank you so much, Senf, for enjoying the pangram. For 13a, I got from Wikipedia that Beauvoir is a commune in the Seine-et-Marne department in the Île-de-France region in north-central France. I agree with you that it is an obscure place with an extremely low population and learn that names of such places should better be avoided in crosswords.

4. Cracked open the Baileys and got stuck in early 🤣

   You know what, this was a really pleasant puzzle. First one in was 26a, a nice classical reference that set the tone for enjoyment. I appreciated such an elegantly curated bunch of words (29a!); nothing too obscure either. Tussled a bit with the final few clues but almost certainly down to new-setter wavelength issues, which I always have.

   Not the world’s friendliest grid with only one checker entering each quadrant, but I think I recognise this as a CC standard grid, the software does have a handful of evil offerings much worse than this!

   A couple I couldn’t parse but that can wait for the review. Lots of ticks, special mention to 15a 16a 31a 7d 8d 22d 23d.

   Thanks for a very enjoyable crossword indeed Rahmat, and thanks as ever to Mr P in advance.

   1. Thank you so much, AgentB. It gave me immense pleasure to read that it was a really pleasant puzzle for you and that the classical reference in 26a set the tone for your enjoyment.

5. I think I have missed this setter’s previous work but I can see why they are welcomed back by some of the regulars. One of the best RC puzzles I’ve seen in a while; no offence intended to anyone else! Very smoothly written and there were some super surfaces which is something in which I take particular pleasure. I’d agree with AgentB that it’s not the most friendly grid but the cluing was very accessible so I did not find myself held up anywhere through lack of crossers. I also, like Senf, need to await the explanation of 21a.

   Only a couple of raised eyebrows: 7d seems a bit one sided since the second element is named after the first but the lovely surface made up for it, and there are perhaps more MP’s than I like to see first thing in the morning but these are minor quibbles.

   Thanks to Rahmat Ali and to Prolixic in due course

   1. I see from later posts that this is a debut; I had misinterpreted previous comments. Welcome, Rahmat.

      1. Thank you so much, PostMark, for liking my puzzle and stamping it as one of the best RC puzzles you have seen in a while. I also agree with you that the second element in 7d is named after the first.

6. It’s been said many times, but we all owe so much to Big Dave’s legacy to the world of crosswords, and this is most certainly a very fitting puzzle to mark the 500th submission to Rookie Corner.

   Welcome, Rahmat Ali, and many congratulations on a splendid RC debut – I would risk several (of Senf’s!) half-crowns that this was far too accomplished to be your first ever cryptic compilation.

   I imagine that Prolixic’s commentometer will be registering a low number, and I have only a very few minor comments:
   – perhaps a little harsh, but I think I heard a soft bleep from my repetition radar over the use of America and Americans to clue “US”.
   – It’s one of my bugbears and many won’t agree, but two vague girls in one clue is two too many for me.
   – I expect I am missing something, but I can’t see anything at all cryptic about 11d.
   – I think that both 19d & 27d are “same-sidey” double definitions. In the case of the former, I suspect that the second definition is derived from the first.
   – Most of your surfaces are fine, which is very encouraging to see, although I can’t make sense out of 31a & 14d.

   My page is littered with ticks: 9a, 12a, 13a, 16a, 20a, 5a, 25a, 26a, 17d & 24d.

   For those puzzled by 21a, it’s (surprisingly) a double definition – look up the answer in the BRB!

   Many thanks, Rahmat, for a most enjoyable solve, and I hope we will see you back again very soon. Thanks too in advance to Prolixic.

   1. Thanks for the explanation of 21a, RD. It was as simple as looking it up – so, of course, I hadn’t taken that step!

   2. Good detective work on 21a, RD – who’d have thought that definition! 11a – I suppose this is a (very) milld cryptic definition, but pretty obvious to most regulars on here. But, to be fair, it might not be so transparent to young/novice solvers. Agree with everything else.

   3. Thanks RD. The font in the BRB seems to be smaller every time I open it. I need to remember that I now have the app on my phone and tablet.

   4. Thank you so much, Rabbit Dave, for congratulating me on ‘a splendid RC debut’. I agree with you that we all owe so much to Big Dave’s legacy to the world of crosswords and it is an honour to read your encouraging opinion that this is most certainly a very fitting puzzle to mark the 500th submission to Rookie Corner. Thank you also for correctly hinting at a DD for 21a.

      From your invaluable comments, I realise that I should avoid repetitions and ‘same-sidey’ double definitions. However, I guess I am okay with my cryptic definition of 11d, though I also feel it might an outburst of my immaturity.

7. Welcome to Rookie Corner, Rahmat Ali.

   A very enjoyable and creditable first puzzle, but my repetition radar almost required a reset at the conclusion of the solve. Apart from the two instances mentioned by RD of “US” clued by “America”/”American”, “politician was repeated to clue “MP” and “in” was used five times as an insertion indicator. Several of my other “hmms” RD has already raised. My favourite clue was 18d.

   It was generally quite a solver-friendly puzzle and clued well technically, so full marks for not producing a brain-stretcher first of all.

   One of Big Dave’s many legacies to us will always be Rookie Corner, and the landmark of 500 puzzles in this slot is one that should be celebrated and revered. Here’s to the next 500! Congratulations to Rahmat Ali on his debut and to BD for his foresight and initiative.

   1. Regarding the repetition point, I have a Word macro which identifies the individual words used in a puzzle’s clues, sorts them alphabetically, and highlights those which occur more than once. It doesn’t solve any problems, but it does make them a bit easier to spot! I’ll be happy to share it if any setters are interested.

   2. Thank you so much, silvanus, for congratulating me on my debut, for finding the puzzle solver-friendly and technically well-clued and for giving full marks for not producing a brain-stretcher. I sincerely note to avoid repetitions in future. Rookie Corner is a wonderful legacy that BD has left to us. The landmark of 1000 puzzles will definitely be reached; it is only a matter of time.

8. Really great to see you in as number 500 in Big Dave’s super Rookie Corner, Rahmat Ali. We enjoyed your puzzle immensely and look forward to your next offering. As yet we can’t parse 21a but we shall await Prolixic’s wise words. Very many thanks.

   1. Thank you so much, Hilton, for enjoying my puzzle immensely and seeing me in as number 500 in the super Rookie Corner of Big Dave’s Crossword Blog. I am also very happy with this conspicuous number, but my happiness beggars description. However, I look forward to sending another puzzle soon.

9. A very agreeable/user-friendly puzzle and from a surprising setter – this blog’s very own RA! It was an enjoyable solve, with one or two minor technical issues that have been covered by others. I particularly liked 18d and 31a, which (along with 14d) doesn’t have a perfect surface – and that’s fine by me. Cryptic crosswords (even in the DT) often contain one or two clues with clunky or nonsensical surfaces. For me surfaces are secondary, they are contrivances to carry/disguise the word-play and provide misdirection by having nothing to do with the answer. They don’t have to be perfectly smooth/grammatically precise literature or factually correct absolutely every time. An imperfect/nonsensical surface carrying great cryptic word-play should never be criticised. But no more than maybe a couple in one puzzle – I’m not an anarchist!

   1. Thank you so much, Jose, for finding my puzzle very agreeable and user-friendly. Your comment that clues with imperfect or nonsensical surface carrying great cryptic wordplay might give some comfort to setters, but I would suggest you criticise mine for that would surely help me to improve.

10. Welcome to RC Rhamat, I’m sure Big Dave would have been very happy to see you marking the 500th anniversary of this particularly welcome legacy of his.
    Well done on not trying to shoot the lights out on your first puzzle, keeping your surface reads for the most part brief and cogent. A few very minor points
    9a…war in the wordplay and in the solution isn’t ideal
    10a…a bit of a giveaway
    31a…the surface read doesn’t make sense
    4d…not keen on the surface read it’s very clunky
    19d…I can’t really see a cryptic aspect, it’s just a perfect description of essentially the same thing.
    23d…two anagrams in one word, each involving the movement of just one letter isn’t ideal.
    Lots of great clues and ideas though, of which my favourite was 17d, so congratulations Rhamat on a great debut and many thanks.

    1. Thank you so much, StephenL. for congratulating me on a ‘great debut’. No doubt Big Dave would have been very happy to see me marking the 500th anniversary of this particularly welcome legacy of his. I agree that part of wordplay in 9a and the entire wordplay in 10a acted as giveaways and that surface reads of some clues were not up to the mark. Your remark on 19d suggests that I should be cautious in writing clues involving double definition, while that on 23d opines the avoidance of two anagrams in one clue.

11. Welcome to the Corner, Rahmat, and on such an auspicious occasion. As I would have expected, this was an excellent piece of work although I think that with some clues, you were far more concerned with the GK involved than with any cryptic element, which isn’t ideal in a ‘cryptic crossword’. Your inclusion of the small French commune interested me so I took the time to discover some of its claim to fame, which I’ve no doubt you also investigated!
    Hope you bring us some more of your compilations in the future.

    1. Thank you so much, Jane, for finding this puzzle an excellent piece of work. I note to keep in mind that, in future, I should be more concerned with the cryptic elements rather than with the GK involved. I look forward to sending another puzzle soon.

12. Many thanks RA, great to see you here with lots to enjoy in a fun pangram to mark the 500th Rookie Corner puzzle. My podium: 15a, 17d (although the nanny was unknown) & 2d. Also liked 18d but I think the linking “is” should be omitted to improve the cryptic grammar. As noted by others, a few repetitions have crept in, and a few that seem a little ‘same-sidey’. 13a is clearly clued, though “place” as a definition feels a little loose – is there an &lit aspect to it? (Otherwise, “beau jour” might’ve been an alternative choice … perhaps just as obscure, and probably tougher to clue fairly, but at least it’s in Chambers!) Thanks again, and in advance to Proolixic :-)

    1. Thank you so much, Fez, for your kind comment of feeling great to see me in this 500th Rookie Corner puzzle with lots to enjoy in the pangram. I concur with your suggestion that ‘is’ should be omitted to improve the cryptic grammar in 18d. Choosing ‘beau jour’ in place of ‘Beauvoir’ in 13a would have impacted two down clues. I was aware of its presence in the BRB.

13. That was very enjoyable and fun to solve. Thank you, Rahmat and welcome to Rookie Corner – I do hope we will see more from you.

    1. Thank you so much, Steve Cowling, for finding my puzzle enjoyable and fun to solve. I look forward to sending another puzzle soon.

14. That was a pleasure from start to finish. Thank you Rahmat & please don’t leave it too long until your next puzzle. NTSPP beckons methinks.

    1. Thank you so much, spindrift, for finding my puzzle a pleasure from start to finish. I look forward to sending another puzzle soon. I am yet to open and see the content of an NTSPP.

15. Super puzzle, and has been noted above, very polished indeed – surely not a Rookie debut! A great way to mark the 500th RC crossword. One of my least favourite grids – 5 mini puzzles, barely connected to each other – but in general so very fairly clued it did not detract from the pleasure. Some of the GK was a little obscure, the crossing clues both with America = US highlighted the repetition, and was there a typo in 23d – raging would makes more sense than ragging?

    For me COTD was 26a, but with so many good clues my podium would collapse under their weight were they named!

    Many thanks to Rahmat, and in addition to Prolixic.

    1. Thank you so much, Mustafa G, for terming my puzzle super, very polished and a great way to mark the 500th RC crossword. I am thrilled to read your second paragraph and take it as a great encouragement. However, in 23d, ‘ragging’ was my choice and not a typo; ‘raging’ is a learning. The latter really makes more sense than the former.

16. Thanks to Rahmat for a great way to mark the 500th RC
    The pettifogging lawyer and the Indian nanny were my favourites and I hope you will return as soon as you can, because that was a very accomplished debut

    1. Thank you so much, Sloop John Bee, for finding my puzzle a very accomplished debut and a great way to mark the 500th RC. The Almighty willing, I will return with another puzzle soon.

17. Many thanks for the review, Prolixic, I’m sure Rahmat will take all your comments on board and use them to full advantage.

18. Finally, my special thanks to Prolixic whose Monthly Prize Puzzles I have been solving since 2015. What an excellent review by the maestro! The beginning itself is breathtakingly germane – “Today is an auspicious day as we celebrate the 500th Rookie Crossword to appear on Big Dave’s crossword blog.”

    Prolixic, I read your specific comments attached to some of the annotations. I have repeated wordplay like A in B for an insertion in too many places, though unknowingly, which I note to avoid in future puzzles. For 9a, a synonym for war “battle in unusually cold capital of Yemen” would, indeed, have been better. For 12a, leaving aside the above ‘repetition’, ‘in the middle of racketeers’ in place of ‘in middle of racketeers’ would have helped the cryptic instructions to work as you suggest which I now feel. I should avoid obscure place names like ‘Beauvoir’ and ‘Coropuna’ like those in 13a and 3d which I chose. Abbreviations such as US and MP have been repeated which I note to avoid. I also note to be careful to see that two sides of double definition are truly different. The two anagrams with very little rearrangement of the letters in 23d should have been avoided and the second anagram indicator should have better been ‘raging’ rather than ‘ragging’. I take these all as a great learning from your end.

    It gave me great solace to read 11d as ‘Very mild cryptic definition by reference to Sampson’s flowing locks.’ But again here, I learnt that Sampson is another spelling of Samson. Many decades ago, I saw the movie ‘Samson and Delilah’ of Victor Mature and Hedy Lamarr. In the Bible, too, the spelling is ‘Samson’. So, till now, I was familiar with the spelling ‘Samson’. Coming back to the second paragraph after the introductory one, I see that the commentometer reads as 5.5/32 or 17.1%. I am not aware of any commentometer till date and so I am very inquisitive to know what it is and whether 17.1% is good or bad. All I can say from my end is that it is a very low percentage.

    1. Well done Rahmat! 17% is definitely good for your first puzzle, a lot better than mine 😂 Lots of these points will be small things you perhaps didn’t even realise; down the line the commentometer score will reduce as all the rules become second nature. Ideas and entertainment are the things that really count, and your puzzle definitely had those 👍

       1. Rabbit Dave also commented earlier on the commentometer but I could not understand. Now it is clear to me. Thank you so much once again, AgentB.

19. What an excellent debut Rahmat Ali! And how very special for it to be the 500th Rookie Corner! What an auspicious occasion!
    This was a most entertaininng RC and I enjoyed it very much. There were many clues to like, too many to list. Naturally, anything feline has to be top of my podium, like 24d and 1a!
    Warmest congratulations, Rahmat Ali! What super comments Prolixic has made! Follow his advice and I hope you will be here again soon.
    As someone who has enjoyed the RC since its inception, I feel quite moved by this anniversary.
    Big Dave certainly was inspired when he created the Rookie Corner. I feel we all wish he were here to enjoy our appreciation and the accolades.
    I’d also like to congratulate and thank Prolixic, the ‘Grand Inquisitor’ for all his superb input since the beginning.
    My thanks, too, to all who have helped bring the RC to fruition and continue to sustain it.
    Finally, a very warm and appreciative thank you to Big Dave’s family for allowing the continuation of this wonderful Blog.

    1. Very well said Catnap! Prolixic is a fair and benevolent Big Boss Man™ and puts all this time in for the good of the cause. He definitely deserves a 🍻

       I thought a while back that the site should set up a ko.fi account so users could donate the admins an occasional treat if we felt so obliged.

    2. Thank you so much, Catnap, for your warmest congratulations and kind comments on my puzzle which you regard as an excellent debut and most entertaining, with many clues to like and too many to list. I also feel if BD were here, it would have been a grand celebration altogether. I am also happy to peruse the valuable comments of Prolixic. Indeed, I will follow his advice for my future puzzles and look forward to sending one soon. I join you in your very warm and appreciative thank you to Big Dave’s family for allowing the continuation of this truly wonderful blog.

20. Well done Mr Rahmat Ali and congratulations t9 be the 500 Rookie corner.

    1. Welcome to the blog Zahid.

    2. Thank you so much, Mr Zahid Mahmood, for your kind comment and congratulations.

       Welcome to the blog.

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